Actress, writer, comedian and YouTube personality Anna Akana has valuable advice for aspiring Asian American entertainers trying to make it in Los Angeles: “Never live in Santa Monica! The 405 is the worst!”
Sharing her wisdom, imparting practical life advice and raising mental health awareness is what Akana set out to do with her career, and comedy is how she’s doing it. Akana was first inspired to pursue comedy after seeing a performance by Margaret Cho. Her channel boasts more than two million subscribers and over 200 videos, each one written and produced by Akana herself. She led the YouTube Red series “Youth & Consequences” and starred opposite Bella Thorne in “You Get Me.” One of her short films, “Miss Earth,” was picked up by New Form Digital and became part of the 2014 Incubator series to showcase and produce original YouTube content.
Akana’s subscribers love her funny and relatable videos, but they also appreciate the way she promotes honesty and openness, especially when discussing mental health and depression.
Akana has been outspoken about the death of her sister, Kristina, who committed suicide in 2007. While the experience nearly broke Akana’s spirit, she has since learned to use humor and her platform as a way of moving on from the trauma. “I always want to give people something to take away,” Akana said. “I love content where I walk away learning something. I’m very focused on self-betterment.”
Her focus on promoting self-care and self-awareness drives her to conduct research on psychology or share her therapist’s advice with her YouTube audience, which is mostly made up of Asian American teenagers and young adults. They’re a demographic that is less likely to seek professional help when it comes to mental health crises, according to the American Psychological Association. “There’s a lot of stigma, shame and silence when it comes to mental health issues, especially in the Asian American community,” Akana said. “I found [mental health awareness] to be a really important thing for me to convey.”
In 2017, she published “So Much I Want to Tell You,” a book written in the form of letters that Akana addresses to her late sister. In the book, Akana writes about her comedy journey and her transition into film and television all while sharing advice and life lessons like a big sister.
Since becoming an actress, Akana has also spoken up on the importance of respectful representation of Asian Americans in media. “I thought I could be an astronaut before I could ever become an actor,” she said about the limiting landscape Asian Americans must navigate to find work in the entertainment industry.
She admits that while opportunities for Asian Americans in entertainment is still pretty dismal, the prospects are much better than they were years ago. “I feel like our work ethic is unparalleled,” Akana said. “And if a lot of us went into it, we would succeed here.”
Akana recalled first beginning to go to auditions and finding acting roles. The competition for film work is still tight, but she is amazed by the solidarity and camaraderie that Asian American entertainers share. “There’s a weird sense in the community that it is competitive because it’s so niche,” Akana said. “We’ve actually found a lot of unity. We see each other in audition rooms and it really feels like a party among friends rather than a competition.”
She oftens tours the country speaking to colleges students. Sometimes, she encounters young people who wish to follow her example but feel discouraged. “There were so many Asian Americans who wanted to pursue careers in entertainment but couldn’t because of parental expectations or just the fear of failure,” she said. But she’s optimistic that anyone with the heart and will to chase their dreams can make it. “I do believe that if it’s in your heart to come here and be a storyteller, it’s more possible now than ever before.”
Speaking up for her beliefs has always been Akana’s way. “My parents have always been about being outspoken about what you believe in so I feel like I’ve sort of practiced that my whole life just by being an obnoxious child who would say whatever she wanted to say about a given subject,” she said. “Now as an adult, I realize that I can utilize this in a much more powerful, selfless way. I get pure joy out of feeling like I’ve accomplished what I set out to do.”
This article is a part of a series of portraits and stories, in celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, on API women who use their perspectives and voices to speak up and impact their communities. Read more here.
